Mandernach v. Bayer Corp.

ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO REMAND AND DISMISSING AS MOOT DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO STAY CASE

On February 8, 2010, the Court held a hearing on Plaintiff Stephanie Mandernach's ("Plaintiff") Motion to Remand Case to San Bernardino County Superior Court (docket no. 9), and Defendant Bayer Corporation, Bayer Healthcare LLC, and Defendant Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s ("Bayer Defendants") Motion to Stay Pending Transfer By The Judicial Panel on Multi district Litigation ("Motion to Stay," docket no. 13). The Court has read and considered the moving, opposing, and reply documents submitted in connection with these motions. For the reasons set forth below, Plaintiff's Motion to Remand Case is GRANTED and Bayer Defendants' Motion to Stay is DISMISSED as MOOT.This matter is hereby REMANDED to the San Bernardino County Superior Court.

Bayer Defendants filed a Notice of Removal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332 and 1441 on December 21, 2009 on the grounds that "[c]omplete diversity exists, no properly joined Defendant is a citizen of the State of California" because "McKesson Corporation is fraudulently joined and therefore is not required to join in the removal." (Docket no. 1, ¶ 2, 6). Plaintiff timely filed a Motion to Remand on December 23, 2009. (Docket no. 9). While this motion was pending, Bayer Defendants filed a Motion to Stay. (Docket no. 13). Plaintiff filed an opposition to this motion on January 11, 2009. (Docket no. 17). Bayer Defendants filed an opposition to the Motion to Remand and request for oral argument on January 14, 2010. (Docket no. 21).

II. DISCUSSION

A. The Motion to Remand

1. Legal Standard

Removal to federal court is governed by 28 U.S.C. § 1441, which in relevant part states that "any civil action brought in a State court of which the district courts of the United States have original jurisdiction, may be removed by the defendant or the defendants[.]" 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a). The Court may remand a case to state court for lack of subject matter jurisdiction or defects in removal procedure. 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c). "The burden of establishing federal jurisdiction is on the party invoking federal jurisdiction." U.S. v. Marks, 530 F.3d 799, 810 (9th Cir. 2008). Federal courts "strictly construe a removal statute against removal jurisdiction." Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries ex rel. Richardson v. U.S. West Communications, Inc, 288 F.3d 414, 417 (9th Cir. 2002). Removal based on diversity jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332 requires complete diversity of citizenship. Morris v. Princess Cruises, Inc., 236 F.3d 1061, 1067 (9th Cir. 2001).

2. Fraudulent Joinder

Removal is not permitted where one of the defendants "is a citizen of the State in which such action is brought." 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b). However, "one exception to the requirement for complete diversity is where a non-diverse defendant has been 'fraudulently joined.'" Morris, 236 F.3d at 1067. "If a plaintiff fails to state a cause of action against a resident defendant, and the failure is obvious according to the well-settled rules of the state, the joinder is fraudulent and 'the defendant's presence in the lawsuit is ignored for purposes of determining diversity.'" United Computer Systems, Inc. v. AT & T Corp., 298 F.3d 756, 762 (9th Cir.2002) (quoting Morris, 236 F.3d at 1067).

Bayer Defendants contend that Defendant McKesson Corporation -- a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business at One Post Street, San Francisco, California -- is fraudulently joined for three independent reasons: (1) Plaintiff fails to allege that McKesson supplied the medication that she specifically ingested, an element essential to establishing that McKesson proximately caused Plaintiff's alleged injuries; (2) there is no reasonable basis for a claim against a distributor of FDA-approved medication where the distributor did not manufacture or design the product; and (3) the allegations against McKesson are lumped together with those against the alleged pharmaceutical manufacturer and include numerous allegations that do not apply to McKesson. (Notice of Removal, ¶ 26).

Our website includes the first part of the main text of the court's opinion.
To read the entire case, you must purchase the decision for download. With purchase,
you also receive any available docket numbers, case citations or footnotes, dissents
and concurrences that accompany the decision.
Docket numbers and/or citations allow you to research a case further or to use a case in a
legal proceeding. Footnotes (if any) include details of the court's decision. If the document contains a simple affirmation or denial without discussion,
there may not be additional text.

Buy This Entire Record For
$7.95

Download the entire decision to receive the complete text, official citation,
docket number, dissents and concurrences, and footnotes for this case.